Bee deaths linked to insecticides, Health Canada data show for second year

Early results from government tests on dead bees this spring and summer show levels of controversial pesticides are comparable with those detected last year, when Health Canada declared a link between the seed-coating chemicals and “unusually high” bee deaths, the Star has learned.

The news represents stronger evidence that types of neonicotinoids — a class of insecticides that act on the nervous system — lathered on corn and soy seeds are contributing to reported bee declines, say beekeepers and environmentalists who want the substances banned in Canada.